On Tap.

Lakewood’s Double IPA Is Always Sunny.

Welcome to On Tap! Each week in this recurring feature, we’ll take an in-depth look at one of the many beers now available in the suddenly crowded North Texas brew scene. The goal here is to look at these area beers without our local goggles on and to wonder aloud, “Is this beer good or do I just like it because it’s local?” Should be a fun experiment, no? Cheers to that!

Overview.
Lakewood Brewing is now seven releases deep on its Legendary Series, and this beer represents another foray in to the bigger, wilder and crazier styles of beer. Lakewood has ventured in to mostly European styles with the first six offerings in the series, but Troll Toll represents something different: a huge West Coast-ish style Double IPA. And it’s expensive, due to its massive grain bill and over-the-top hop situation. So, did you bring the toll? Because you gotta pay the troll toll if you want to get in to this bottle’s hole. I very much like Lakewood’s lineup of its flagship beers. Does the Legendary Series represent a sort of test where it can release a small batch, without too much risk, and get feedback from the public? Or is it just something fun to do every now and again? Either way, I’m always game to try them.

Background on Double IPA.
The double IPA style is a cranked up version of the already-hoppy IPA. The grain bill is normally fairly large, making for an elevated ABV. In fact, it’s not out of the ordinary to see a Double IPA with a 10 percent ABV. This beer style is a showcase for hops, notably, new world varieties that contain pine, resinous and citrus characteristics. The yeast situation should be clean, without much off-flavor. Well, even if there was some sort of off flavor in a Double IPA, it’s probably masked by the huge hop bitterness. The term double is arbitrary, as is “imperial” or “extra.” However, American breweries have gathered around the term double to describe this style. Double IPA is not your run-of-the-mill poolside summer sipper. More often than not, brewers will gravitate toward the higher end of the ABV for this style. So get your helmet.

Appearance.
Troll Toll pours light orange in color. There’s a very nice layer of head that hangs around for a bit, and lacing persists throughout my first glass. Right when the beer pours, there is a big amount chill haze. I see the beautiful color of the beer, but I can’t see through it. However, after 20 minutes or so into my pour, the beer takes a hard turn towards clarity. And that’s a good thing, because I expect this beer to be a clear beer.

Aroma.
The malt backbone on this beer seems slightly reminiscent of the sweet caramel and toast that you find in a barleywine, except that it’s just a hint of it. And just as I’m about halfway through noticing this malty goodness, I am clobbered over the head with the West Coast hop onslaught. I sense a huge amount of citrus, a huge amount of pine, a bit of bubble gum and a bitter catty finish. The nose is huge on the hops. It’s all about the hoppy action.

Flavor.
Flavor, like the aroma department, is crazy on the hops. Where the aroma is dominated by pine notes, the flavor seems sort of catty first, and pine and citrus second. This beer is so aggressively hopped that it almost gets in the way of the rest of the beer. I am a total hop head, no doubt, but this seems like the beer is pushed so far on bittering that it’s a bit unbalanced. Maybe it’s just me. Are you a hop head? Then you’ll probably appreciate how intensely bitter this beer is. But I’m a little bit turned off by it. The intensity of the hops almost turns in to a sort of spicy sensation. I wish that the beer had a little bit more residual sweetness to, perhaps, balance this bitterness.

Mouthfeel.
Troll Toll finishes clean and smooth. The carbonation is moderately high on this beer, and it cranks up the bitter sensation I feel on my tongue. I enjoy the mouthfeel on this beer. Thumbs way up. For a 9.6% percent ABV beer, there is very little sticky left. But as I mentioned in the flavor department, I think it could use a little bit more sweetness.

Overall Impression.
Troll Toll is good for hop lovers. If you want to get in to this bottle’s hole, you better be prepared to get your tongue whipped from the over-the-top hop action. It’s not so good for beer fans who are looking for a balanced, easy drinking beer. This beer is a bit of a slog to get through. And I’m in no way saying that this is a bad beer, however, it’s just, well, a lot. There is a lot going on here, and I’m so palate-wrecked from the bitterness that all I can taste is catty, resinous pine at this point.

Score.
On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d give Lakewood Brewing Troll Toll a 5.5.

Ben Smithson is a beer fan, avid homebrewer and foodie. If he's not brewing, learning or writing about beer, you might find him hanging out at one of the local craft beer joints in East Dallas. To counter his bad habits, he rides his bike and kayaks when the weather is nice.